Indian batsman Virat Kohli has ended his T20I career after the Indian National Cricket Team won the 2024 T20 World Cup. The right-hander had a fairytale ending to his career as in his final game, the team made history and won its second title in the T20 format.
Virat Kohli, who has been the backbone of the Indian team for the past decade, made sure to end his career on a high on the individual front. In his last match in Indian T20 colours, the top-order batsman bagged the Man of the Match award and helped his team to a win.
Unless the 2024 T20 World Cup final is held, Virat Kohli failed to deliver throughout the tournament but made sure to stand up for his team when it mattered most. The opening batsman stepped up under pressure and led his team to victory against South Africa at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Virat Kohli finished with a vital innings of 76 runs off 59 balls. He batted at a strike rate of around 130 and hit 6 fours and 2 sixes in his innings. His effort with the bat propelled India to a total of 176 runs on the board and won the game by 7 runs to lift their second T20 World Cup title. He also won the Man of the Match award for his innings.
After the match was over, he announced his retirement and a day later, Ravindra Jadeja also took the same decision and announced his retirement from T20Is. The all-rounder had a poor showing in the 2024 T20 World Cup as he failed to get going with the bat and ball and was arguably the weakest link in the team.
Overall, during his career, Ravindra Jadeja made decent contributions to the Indian team with both bat and ball. But it is fair to say that his performances in the format were nowhere close to what he has done for the Indian National Cricket Team in ODIs and Tests.
In the latest ICC rankings for the most all-rounder, what caught the attention of many was that Virat Kohli was ranked ahead of Ravindra Jadeja. The batsman was placed at 79th spot with 49 points, while Jadeja finished at 86th spot with 45 points.
Interestingly, Virat Kohli did not play many matches during his career. In the last decade, he bowled 2.4 overs and picked up one wicket, but with the bat he is the second-highest run-getter in this format. Jadeja, on the other hand, finished his career with 54 wickets in 74 matches he played.
Hardik Pandya becomes the new No. 1 all-rounder in the T20I rankings
Apart from Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja, it was Indian vice-captain Hardik Pandya who stole the limelight. The star player became the new number one all-rounder in the T20I format. He became the first Indian to achieve this feat. This comes after his sensational performance with bat and ball at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Hardik Pandya was one of the main reasons behind India’s victory in the 2024 T20 World Cup. The all-rounder was at the top of his game with both the bat and the ball. He took 11 wickets in the tournament and also scored 144 runs, helping the team win the title and end the title drought.
